Revisiting Touching the Soul of a Child

From the desk of Carol C. . . There was quite a bit of feedback from my post “Touching the Soul of a Child”.  A common question was “Do teachers still go above and beyond as this teacher did?”.  My answer is…Yes.  In this day and time for a multitude of reasons teachers may not…

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Difference Makers

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.”  – Mahatma Gandhi I had dinner with four amazing women last evening, and as you can probably guess, the conversation revolved around teaching.  We were dissecting the characteristics exemplary educators possess.  What is it that gives them…

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Hour of Code

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . “An understanding of computer science is becoming increasingly essential in today’s world.  Our national competitiveness depends upon our ability to educate our children – and that includes our girls – in this critical field”   – Sheryl Sandberg, Chief Operating Officer, Facebook To develop globally competitive students…

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Improving the Quality of Literature Circles

From the desk of Carol C. . . Do you ever feel the literature circles in your classroom could work better?  A higher level of learning taking place?  Responses from more students?  Sometimes we don’t notice the positives that are taking place in lit circles, so we aren’t able to take advantage of those aspects. …

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Start a Reading Movement

From the desk of Alice… I recently went to my child’s bookfair and came across the book Igniting a Passion for Reading by Steven Layne.  I read this book several years ago and loved it so I picked it up for one of my ERG principals because I thought she would really appreciate it.  We recently…

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Touching the Soul of a Child

From the desk of Carol C. . . My friend is a voracious reader.  She reads, remembers, and seems to understand everything in print she comes across.  Her vocabulary is amazing.  Reading is her passion. Now go back 30 years and look at my friend.  She would have been in first grade.  It would be…

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Quality – Not Quantity

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . The word homework makes me cringe.  I think back to the countless hours my now grown daughter and I spent at the kitchen table – more concerned about completing the seemingly endless assignments than actually learning from them.  She survived, but my heart breaks as I…

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The Kindness Ripple Effect

From the desk of Leigh Ann . . . The beginning of a new year is a chance for a fresh start!  This is a great opportunity to show our children that just by doing things a little differently, they can truly make a difference in 2015.  We can inspire our students to create a…

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